Friday, August 28, 2015

Suit Challenges Nevada's School Voucher Program

The ACLU yesterday filed suit in state court in Nevada challenging the state's broad school voucher program. Under the program, parents of a child who has attended public school for 100 consecutive days may move the child to a private school (including a religious school) and have the state pay into an educational savings account for the student an amount equal to at least 90% of the statewide average basic support per pupil. (See prior posting.) The complaint (full text) in Duncan v. State of Nevada, (NV Dist. Ct., filed 8/27/2015), contends that private religious schools constitute the majority of private schools eligible to participate in the educational savings account program. It alleges that the program violates Art. XI, Sec. 10 of the Nevada constitution that prohibits public funds from being used for sectarian purposes, as well as Art. XI Sec. 2 that requires a uniform system of common schools in which no instruction of a sectarian character takes place. AP reports on the lawsuit.